No Need to Talk
by nevereatdirt
Summary: Kurloz Makara doesn't speak to anyone. He never really wants to. He never really tries to. But he's just met someone that he wants to say hello to.
1. Almost Silent

First days have never been your favorite. It isn't like you're the new kid in school, or you have no friends. You have plenty of friends. Or at least people that tolerate you. But you're sitting in the cafeteria with your brother, listening to him ramble on and on and _on_ about something that he did while he was stoned. Which isn't a surprise, he's _always_ stoned anymore. Something about trying to "chill the motherfuck out, bro" and you can't help but silently laugh whenever he says that.

The bell rings and everyone starts moving to homeroom. You unfold himself form the seat you've taken and move at a languid pace. You aren't in any hurry. A few long strides will take you to your locker and then to your homeroom. You grab your books and then slide into your usual seat in the back. This is your third year with this homeroom and no one is going to bother you. You do your best to sit in the desk, having to slouch forward some so that your legs will fit under the top.

Your friend slides into the desk next to you, talking loudly about what he and his girlfriend had been doing the night before. He isn't a bad guy, but _damn_ did he talk a lot. But while he's talking, you're distracted by someone new talking to your homeroom teacher.

Her hair is so long and black you're entranced by it. She speaks loudly, with a bit of an accent. You can't place it, but it's amazing. You look down when she turns around to take a seat. Once you can't hear footsteps anymore you look up. She's sitting in the front of the room, surrounded by a gaggle of girls asking her questions.

Your friend turns and looks at you. "Damn, Kurloz, she's _hot_."

You turn to look at him and raise an eyebrow, trying to get "Should you really be talking about how hot other girls are when you have a girlfriend?" but really just getting "What do you mean?" across to your friend.

"Don't give me that fucking look, Kurly!" He says that just a little too loudly. You can already see the teacher writing him a detention slip and motion for him to keep it down. "Don't tell me to be quiet I can be as loud as I want, watch!" He starts whooping wildly which, were he at a party, would probably be hilarious. But sitting in the middle of homeroom it earns him two extra days of detention.

The bell rings and you clamor out of your seat as best as you can toward his next class.

She's there, too.

You sit down behind her and feel your heart skip a beat. You give a little half smile and a wave. _Please don't talk to me_. You can't say anything back. But you've never been a lucky man.

"Hi there!" Her voice is almost painfully loud this close. "I'm Meulin!"

You point to your mouth and shake your head. You're trying to say "I can't speak to you. I'm sorry. I want to. I _really_ want to but I _can't_..."

But your thoughts are interrupted by someone sitting next to Meulin and laughing. "Don't bother trying to get an answer out of Makara. His bitchass won't talk to _no one_."

_Yeah, well fuck you too, Meenah._ You do your best to stare her down, but she's always been one of the few people _not_ intimidated by you.

"What? Why not!" Meulin looks a little sad that you won't say anything. That makes you remarkably happy in the strangest way.

"Damn I don't know!" Meenah looks back at you with a frown on her face. "He's just a big creep. You don't wanna be getting involved in _any_ of his shit."

You slouch back in your seat again, and just sit there drawing skulls through the rest of class. You don't have any other classes with her through the day, but her just a little too-loud voice sticks with you. Her excitement at meeting you. Her disappointment that you wouldn't speak. You feel like she's going to be someone to remember.

After school you find himself sitting in your car with your brother and one of his friends. He was tiny and angry and you don't see why he hangs out with your brother, but you have a sneaking suspicion that it might be something that you really don't want to hear about your little brother doing. Ever. Even if you know it's going to happen sooner or later.

You drive the three of you back to your house and, even though it's just your brother and his friend, you can't talk with his friend there. But the two of them go up to his room and you're left downstairs with your dad. _Great_.

You sit in the black comfy chair and flip through the channels aimlessly. Nothing is catching your eye but it gives you something to do until your dad kicks you out of here to go up to your room. You comply and make your way up the stairs and down the hall to your room.

Your posters on the wall aren't exactly current to your likes anymore. Bob Marley? You haven't really been into the reggae scene for a couple years now. Maybe you should give this shit to Gamzee. Even though yours friends keep saying that he was a juggalo, you know that he isn't. He _hates_ ICP and you know that. You're not sure why he doesn't like them if you're completely honest. Crazy white boy rap. Always seemed like his cup of tea to you.

You shake the thoughts out of your head and close the door behind you. You pull off your hoodie and shirt then sit at your desk. You turn put your headphones on and start to dig through 4chan and Reddit. You don't even notice as the hours slipping past you before it's time for you to go to bed. Fucking school anyway.

You're brushing your teeth when your brother comes into the bathroom.

"Hey bro!" You can tell from how raspy his voice is that he's been smoking in his room. "I hear there's a new chica in your grade, right?"

You nod. You never speak when you're brushing your teeth. That's rude.

"She hot."

You roll your eyes and sign at him. "Not your business."

"Hey man just wondering. She's got a sister in Kar-bro's grade. She ain't _hot_ but she is one cute little motherfucker."

You raise your eyebrows at him but he doesn't see; he's too busy washing that disgusting grease makeup off his face. When you do yours you always prefer to use cream or a nice water based. The grease just never dries.

When he finishes washing his face you're already done brushing your teeth, but you still have your eyebrows raised, waiting for him to tell you what he means.

"What is it bro?"

You sign. "New girl?"

"Oh yeah! Like she's just the tiniest sis I ever seen, bro! I kinda wanna ask if she wants to party with me sometime, but I don't wanna up and scare her off." He laughs. That fucking stoner laugh. You've hated that laugh since you first heard it from your friends in middle school. You'd had it for a while too, back in your Marley days.

But those are done. You're more of an old school punk fan these days.

He's staring at you, like there's something interesting on your face. Which there probably is. He's one of the only people that can read your thoughts that way. "What's up, bro?"

You shrug and shake your head. You don't wanna say anything about Meulin.

"Nah, bro, there is something miraculous up and in your head."

You smile a little and shrug again.

"Tell me, bro. She hot?"

You glare at him. Of course he'd think it was about a girl. _But it is about a girl. She's been in your motherfuckin' head all day, Kurloz._

"Oh she must be if you're not saying _anything_."

You laugh quietly with your mouth closed.

"Hey at least give me a name, Kur-bro!"

You swallow and look up at him. You speak so quietly that you're not sure if you actually say it. "Her name is Meulin."

It feels fantastic to say it. You love the way it rolls off your tongue and past your lips. You hope you can work up the nerve to talk to her.

It's going to take a hell of a lot to do that, but you;re going to do it.

You're going to try to talk to her tomorrow.


	2. Don't Speak

You're sitting in homeroom, waiting for her to show up. You're unbelievably nervous. In fact you're so nervous that you've begun to fidget. You hate it when you fidget. People always think that you're tweaking out. You don't even know why. You're tall and skeletal but fuck that's just because you've got the metabolism of a _shrew_ and have been growing three inches a year since fifth grade.

You Makaras grow tall, after all.

Your friend walks in and slides into his usual seat again, a shit eating grin plastered across his face. He starts to talk but you're not listening at all. You're waiting for her.

Homeroom passes and there's no sign of her, which puts you into a _mood_ until your next class. She's there, but she isn't speaking at all. After class starts you write her a note.

_WHAT'S WRONG? :o)_

She takes it and looks at it. In the time it takes her to respond, you think that she might have decided to not respond at all. But she passes it back with a grin.

_NOTHING'S WRONG!_

You smile at the little cat she drew on the note. It might be the cutest thing you've seen.

_YOU WERE SO TALKATIVE YESTERDAY. WHY NOT TODAY? :o(_

She quickly responds and passes it back to you.

_I DON'T HAVE MY EARAIDS IN! WITHOUT THEM I'M TOO LOUD!_

You raise your eye brows a little as you think. You tap her on the shoulder while the teacher isn't looking and she turns around. You sign to her. "Can you sign?"

She tilts her head like she has to think about it and then nods, signing back. "Yes! I'm not very good at it, though. My dad always told me to read lips instead."

You smile while you respond. "That's pretty cool. I'm Kurloz, by the way."

She scrunches her nose at the sign for your name. "Tall K?"

You spell it out for her. "Since I'm tall and my name starts with K combining them seemed like the best way to go." You laugh silently.

The teacher turns around and Meulin has to face forward.

The next class you're in a bit of a mood again but at lunch Meulin sits next to you. You sign to each other excitedly. She asks if you're deaf or hearing impaired like she is and that's when you have a hard time explaining.

"I can hear just fine."

"Then are you mute?"

You shake your head. "Not exactly." You tilt your head back and forth, thinking. "I have a hard time talking in front of people."

"I'm sorry! I'll try to keep to signing between us then!"

You laugh silently again, your shoulders moving up and down.

"What's so funny?"

"I don't mind if you talk to me. I just... Can't respond here."

"Well that's sad! I'd rather sign to you! It's like a little secret language that only we know!"

You have to agree with her there. But the two of you also have to eat lunch. You take turns telling stories and eating, and by the end of lunch you know a lot more about her.

She's seventeen, which surprises you since she's so small, and originally from Japan. Her mother is from here, but her father is Japanese. She lived there until she was ten and her parents divorced. Since then she, her mother and her little sister have been moving around a lot. It's been hard losing her hearing, but she likes to think that she's doing it with grace.

You'd like to agree.

She asks you questions that you can't really answer. Mostly about your family. You have a hard time telling people about what your father does, unlike the Amporas who flash it around like it's some kind of badge of honor.

Your father is a bad, bad man and you're going to take his place someday.

But you don't tell her this.

You tell her that your father is a business man. Working a boring desk and doing the nine to five. He'd laugh at that and call you a crazy little shit for telling anyone that.

But you change the topic. You talk about her little cat drawings on her notes. That topic brings you to the end of lunch and you give her your number so the two of you can text. She texts you right away and you add her excitedly. You can already tell that you like this new girl. It's almost like you're drawn to her. But you still haven't spoken to her. Which you suppose would be a waste since she couldn't hear you today.

_Tomorrow, though. I'll talk to her tomorrow_, you promise yourself.

When you're waiting for your brother in the car you text Meulin.

_HEY! :o)_

You don't expect an answer right away, but you're so fucking glad that you get one.

(.=^・ェ・^=) _HELLO!_

_OH WOW I DIDN'T EXPECT YOU TO RESPOND SO QUICKLY! :o)_

(・∀・)_ YOU LEARN TO TEXT FAST WHEN YOU CAN'T HEAR!_

_HEH, I GUESS THAT'S TRUE AIN'T IT? :o)_

(.=^・ェ・^=) _SO WHAT'S UP?_

_OH JUST TAKING MY LITTLE BRO HOME. :o)_

You wait a split second before texing her again.

_YOU MAYBE WANNA... HANG OUT SOMETIME? :o)_

You frown a little at how desperate that last text sounded, but at least you didn't whisper it at her like a creep. You cringe a little when you hear your phone go off.

At least until you check it.

(^･o･^)ﾉ" _OMG I'D LOVE TO!_

You start to laugh out loud with a wide grin across your face as you text you back.

_WE COULD HANG OUT TODAY IF YOU WANT. OR MAYBE TOMORROW? AFTER SCHOOL? :o)_

(^･o･^)ﾉ" _TOMORROW SOUNDS PURRFECT LET'S DO IT!_

_COOL. MEET ME IN THE CAFETERIA. WE CAN GO GET SOMETHING TO EAT AND MAYBE CHILL IN LOLAR PARK. :o)_

The two of you text through the rest of the night, and your brother keeps throwing you these sly little grins. You choose to ignore him in favor of sitting in your room until you practically fall asleep texting her. Remarkably, it seems like she stays up later than you do. She says it has something to do with writing fanfiction? But that's just silly. Who stays up late to write stories about fictional characters that aren't even their own?

You think it's cute though. That she's that passionate about what she does.

Your face flushes a little when you realize that you thought something about her was cute.

_Who are you kidding, you think everything about her is cute._ You try to shake that thought out of your head. _You want to kiss her cute little face, Kurloz. You want to snuggle with her. You want to fuck her_.

You get up and go into the bathroom. You stare at yourself in the mirror and shake your head at your reflection before splashing cold water on your face. You feel a little better but that nagging voice in your head won't let you forget your own thoughts.

You decide to text her goodnight and just try to sleep. You've got a big day ahead of you after all.


	3. Barely Audible

You're sitting in homeroom and she walks in. She moves to sit next to you, but the gaggle of girls stop her from making it to you. That's okay. You can sign in your next class. But you can't keep your eyes off her. Every little movement shifts her ebony hair, making it shine in a different way. You want to run your fingers through it and see how soft it is.

_You want to pull it, Kurloz. You want to make her scream your name._

You shake the thought from your head. You don't want to think like that right now.

Your friend sits next to you again and is babbling about something he and his girlfriend are going to try out tonight. You scribble a little note at him.

_NOT NOW, MITUNA._

He scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest. "It's not my fault you're too busy staring at the new girl to pay any attention to the crazy shit that Tula and I are gonna be doing!"

_HER NAME IS MEULIN. :o)_

Mituna scrunches his nose at the note. "I don't give a fuck what her name is. When are you gonna get up on that?"

You pass him the first note again and just listen to him babble through the rest of homeroom. When the bell rings you lope over to Meulin and wave at her. You sign, "Are you excited to see Lolar park?"

She laughs and you notice that she has her hearing aid in. "I'm so excited!" You smile a little at her voice.

"Have you ever been there before?" You don't want to take her to some place _boring_, and Lolar park might be the most miraculous place you've ever been, but it isn't exactly exciting.

"No! I'm awfully excited to go!" You swear that she says "aw-furry" and you're not sure if it's her accent or if she just doesn't quite grasp the language yet.

"I'm glad. So we'll meet in the cafeteria?" You're walking into the classroom and taking your seats as the two of you talk and sign. You're starting to wish that you had more classes with her. _Who are you kidding you want to have every class with her. You want to spend all day with her. You know what you want to do with her, Kurloz._

You shake the thought out of your head again.

Your brain really needs to learn when its thinking isn't welcome.

The two of you aren't able to talk through much of class, but she sits with you again at lunch and the two of you sign little stories at each other while you eat. You go back to class after lunch and sit in a _mood_ again. During your last class Mituna tries to cheer you up by eating what looks like an applesauce cup full of bits from the cafeteria trash.

It doesn't cheer you up so much as make you wonder how the two of you can be such good friends sometimes. But damn you love that kid, even if he does shit like that.

The bell rings before you realize it and you're off to get your things and go to the cafeteria. She's already waiting for you there. You waved and sign, "Ready?"

"Yeah I'm ready!" She grabs her bag and skips over to you. The two of you head out to your car and you can't help but look down at her from the corner of your eye. A few passersby shoot you looks, but you know that they're just wondering why a cute girl like her would be wandering around with a huge creep like you.

You're still not sure why people think you're so creepy. Sure you'll tall and lanky. And you don't say much. And there's a rumor going around that your dad's a mafia boss, spread by none other than one of the little Ampora shits.

That last one may have been true, but you can't tell her that. At least not just yet. Too soon, Kurloz, too soon.

You make it out to your car and the two of you get in. You let her know that you've got to wait for your brother and drop him off first and she agrees.

Once you take Gamzee home and drop him off you decide to try and speak. You go to ask "Where do you want to eat?" but all that comes out is silence. Fuck that. You tap her shoulder and sign it to her instead

She shrugs. "I don't know! I'll go wherever the food is good!" She pauses. "Ooh is there a good seafood place anywhere around here?"

You think for a few minutes and then realize that there's one in your price range. "Red Lobster?"

She squees. She actually fucking _squees_ and it is the most adorable sound you've heard come out of her.

_You want to know what other noises she'll make, don't you, Kurloz? You want to hear her moan and whimper for you. Begging you to go faster..._

You shake the thoughts from your head. Sometimes being a horny teenager is hard.

You head to Red Lobster and the two of you sign through your earlier dinner. Just swapping little facts and things about your families and your lives. She did most of the signing. You just liked to watch her. Her laughter was contagious. You can't help but to chuckle under your breath with her.

You eat much more quickly than she does and once you're done, you can't take your eyes off her. You hope she thinks that it's because you're watching her sign, but really you just like watching her. You feel something knock against one of your feet and you sit up with a start.

Se laughs and signs at you. "Sorry! That was my foot!"

You smile and shake your head. "It's fine."

Once she's finished you pay for the meal, despite her protests. You let her know that it's simply the gentlemanly thing to do on a date and she blushes.

Your eyes widened when you realize that you called it a date and she lets you know that it's okay.

She pulls you by the hand out to your car and you drive to the park.

The flowers in the park are still in bloom and you couldn't be happier. They make the whole place look like a colorful stream. The water reflects all of the colors. You smiled when you see her reaction. Her lips are parted in amazement and the way her eyes light up makes you want to just lean over and steal a kiss.

You don't, though. You park the car and take her to your special place. You go there when you're feeling down or you want to be alone.

You lead her into the bushes to where your clearing is and you lay down to look up at the leaves. This spot is so much more miraculous at night, but it's still nice now. She lays down next to you and you swallow hard.

She talks to you about how beautiful this spot is. How it reminds her of a park where she grew up. She grabs your hand and laces her fingers with yours. You smile and bite your lip.

You really want to say something to her, but you're afraid she might not hear you if you speak. You're just so quiet when you do...

But you tap on her shoulder to get her attention and she rolls onto her side to look at you. "What is it?" She smiles and you hold up a finger for her to be quiet. "Huh?" You put the finger against her lips and take a deep breath.

You open your mouth and mouth her name. You shake your head and calm yourself a little and, finally, you can say it. "Meulin?" Her eyes widen. She probably didn't expect your voice to be so low. She doesn't say anything, but she just keeps staring. You work up the nerve to say it. "Can I kiss you?"

She laughs and nods. You start laughing quietly too and lean forward, pressing your lips to hers. She sighs and leans into it. You put your hand to her cheek and hold her there.

When you pull back, you're both smiling.

You can't help but to feel that this might be the beginning of something great.


	4. Idle Chatter

You can't believe that you let him kiss you. You like him, yeah, but you've only know him for _three days_. For all you know about him he could be some psychopath that wants to skin you and wear you as some kind of lady suit.

You shake your head. You've been thinking about this all weekend and now, as you sit in homeroom, you can't bear to look back at him. He's so sweet. _But he could just be trying to get in your pants_. You roll your eyes at your brain. You don't even _wear_ pants. You really are more a skirt kind of girl. You laugh at your own brain argument, but you realize that your brain _does_ have a point.

You sink a little into your seat and hurry out of the room when homeroom is over. You take your seat and he sits behind you. He taps your shoulder and turn around to see him smiling broadly at you. You can't help but to smile back at him. His curly hair is so wild and you just want to reach out and touch it, but you wait to find out what he has to say.

He signs at you. "I had fun on Friday. You want to go out again some time?"

Your face flushes and you bite your lip as you look away. You _do_ want to go out with him again but you don't know what to say. "Maybe we could hang out with some friends some time! I don't really know anyone else around here."

His smile falters, just the smallest fraction, and you realize that he's probably disappointed. "Hey that's fine. My bro and I might be having a party this weekend. You want to come?"

You swallow and shake your head. "I'm not very good with parties."

"That's fine. You sure?" His eyebrows knit together, hopefully.

"Yeah, sorry." You're lying now. _Why the fuck are you lying? You want to GO. Let him kiss you again, Meulin_. You ignore your thoughts. "Maybe some other time?"

He smiles, but you can still see worry in his blue eyes. "That'd be great."

The teacher starts the class and you look forward, taking notes, when you feel another tap on your shoulder. He has a note in his hand for you and you take it.

_ARE YOU OKAY? :o(_

You look around and scribble out a response to him.

_YEAH I'M FINE! WHY?_

It doesn't take long for him to reply.

_IS IT BECAUSE I KISSED YOU FRIDAY? :o(_

Bingo. But you can't tell him that. You _liked _it, you just don't know how you feel about it. You scrawl another quick note to him.

_CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS AT LUNCH? I THINK I HAVE MORE TO SAY THAN I SHOULD IN A NOTE._

_OKAY. :o)_

You smile a little at the happy face and remember the way he smiled after he kissed you. You brush your fingers against your lower lip and go back to taking notes. You can't concentrate too much on that kiss. He's probably done that with loads of girls in that spot. It's probably some doing-it spot he has for sexy fun-times.

You're beginning to wish that you knew more about what real teenagers do on dates. It's not like you'd _never_ been on one before, you just... Don't go out much. You spend most of your time at home writing fanfiction and blogging about Supernatural in your PJs. You _like _to be around people, but they all seem to find your tendency to ship your friends a bit disconcerting.

But you don't care about that. If your friends are cute together, then goddammit they are _cute together_. You never play match maker. You just like to watch how things unfold.

Though you can't deny that you root for your OTPs the whole time.

After class with him is over you go to your next class of the day and sit with your assigned lab partner. He's nice enough, and he hasn't said anything about you being hearing impaired at all. Though you can't really be sure. He's said _so_ much that you might have missed it. He seems nice enough, though. But his need to be inoffensive makes him sound a bit silly if you're being entirely honest with yourself.

You ask him about Kurloz as quietly as you can. He's been in the same grade with him since they started school. He should know something, shouldn't he?

He makes a little face when you mention him. That can't be good.

"Well. He has a bit of a... _reputation_ around the school." He tuts some. "Cronus told me once that he's involved with rather questionable characters, but then with _his_ reputation he might just be spreading rumors." He makes another little face. He has so many micro-expressions! "I'm not one to spread rumors, but Kurloz Makara is a rather... unique individual. He hasn't spoken a word to anyone outside of his family or Mituna Captor since... Well I'm not even _sure_ when, but it's been an incredibly long time." He brushes his hair out of his face with the back of his hand. "I would think that he'd be in the same line of work as his father as well."

You scrunch your nose and furrow your brow. "He's not a businessman he's a full time high school student."

His jaw drops a little. "He told you that his father's a businessman?"

You laugh. "Well _yeah_."

He looks around nervously, as if he's debating with himself before he says anything, but the greaser boy come in and sits at the lab station across from you before he can. "Hey, doll." His voice is smooth. Too smooth. Like oil, not cream. "Looks like you managed to get Kanny here to shut up for once."

"I'll have you know that I would appreciate it if you never called me Kanny again as that is a name for _babies_ and I most certainly am not a baby."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll stop with the Kanny calling, Kankri."

Kankri rolls his eyes. "Of course you will, Cronus."

Cronus looks back at you. "So, kitty cat, how'd you get him so quiet earlier?" He looks genuinely interested.

You start to speak but Kankri interrupts you. "She's been asking about Kurloz."

Cronus's laid-back expression quickly turns sour. "He's trouble. You don't want anything to do with him."

You furrow your brow. "I don't think that's true! He's so nice!"

Cronus laughs manically at you and wipes a tear from his eyes. "Kurloz Makara? _Nice_? I mean he ain't exactly _mean_ but nice is not what I'd call him."

"Why not?"

"Well I just know that the Makara family has a proclivity toward using narcotics, and being a bunch of creepy shits. Kurloz really gives me the heebie-jeebies."

You blink a few times. "Carlos isn't creepy!"

Cronus laughs. "You call him Carlos? Wow, I'm surprised Kurloz hasn't flipped shit on that." He looks at Kankri. "Remember when Karkat called him Carlos? I thought that he'd _kill_ him, man!"

Kankri rolls his eyes and you're just confused. You said Kurloz, didn't you? "I _said_ Carlos, though."

"No, you said Carlos, not Kurloz."

"Those are the same names." You furrow your brow.

He shakes his head, still laughing. "You are one silly cat." He pushes a fallen hair back with a smirk. "I'd just forget about Kurloz, though. He's a creepy fucker that ain't worth your time. Guys would be _tripping_ over themselves to be having some fun with you."

Kankri glares at him. "Cronus."

"What, babe?" He smiles at Kankri.

With all of the smiles that he throws Kankri you've decided to start your shipping chart for this school because they are totally fucking.

At least in your head.

Kankri sighs. "You really shouldn't speak to her that way."

"And just why not?"

"She's a _person_ with _feelings_." The two of them talk through the rest of class. It's how they were the first three days of class too.

After you're dismissed you make your way to lunch and sit down next to Kurloz. He signs. "You want to go eat outside? So no one overhears us."

You laugh and sign back. "Overhears? We're signing."

He shrugs. "I'd like to talk."

You chew on your lower lip and nod. "Yeah let's go outside." You go to grab your lunch, but he picks them both up and motions with his head to follow.

He takes you to the school greenhouse and looks around. There's no one here and he looks at you. You open the door and the two of you go inside. He sets your trays down and sits down on a bench. When he looks up at you he looks a little hurt. You're not sure why. You don't want him to be hurt. _You want to kiss him again._

You do want to kiss him again, but you're not going to. Not right now. You don't even know him. You know what he's told you and the rumors you've heard about him.

You sit down across from his and take a bite of your sandwich, chewing thoughtfully.

He eats his lunch quickly and sits, waiting for you to finish yours.

You look up at him when you've finished the sandwich but push the rest of your food to the side. You cross your arms on the table and lean in a little. "I guess you're waiting for me to tell you what's wrong, huh?"

He nods, wordlessly.

You take a deep breath and let it out. "I guess that I'll start by telling you that I _did_ want to kiss you, but..."

He raises his eyebrows and smiles, encouraging you to speak.

"But I think it was too soon..." His smile droops. "I barely know you! I mean... Do you normally kiss someone after only knowing them for three days?"

He shakes his head and looks away, a blush spreading over his cheeks.

"So it's just me then?"

He looks up and nods quickly, almost eagerly.

"I still think it was too soon for _me_, though..." You swallow and look down. You don't want to see what he's doing while you're talking. "I'd like to get to know you more, though. So... maybe sometime we could hang out with some friends and just just... I don't know. Hang out. Not a party. Just a few people." You look up at him and see that he's still smiling.

He doesn't say anything, he just signs. "You could come over today if you want. One of my friends and I are going to be studying."

"I could do that. But what are you studying? The semester just started." You laugh a little and he smiles while he signs.

"He wants to get ahead so when we start he's ready."

"That's not a bad idea!"

"You want to meet me at my car again then?"

"Sure." You smile. "Just... As friends though. I'm not sure if I'm ready to be anything else." He nods and you blush a little. "Though... If something happens and you maybe want to kiss me _again_..." You bite your lip and shake your head. "Please don't. Not just yet."

He nods and actually speaks again. "Okay."

You smile at his voice. It's reassuring and so deep.

You wish that he would talk more.


	5. Soft Talk

You're a little sad that she wants to take it slow. But from that one gentle kiss you're willing to wait. After school you wait for her in the cafeteria and you go out to your car. Your brother's already draped over the hood, waiting for you to get there. He's drumming his fingers against the metal. He must have run out of pot. Amateur.

You pull at his foot and he sits up, grimacing at you. Yeah. He is _definitely _out of pot.

You gesture at Meulin and sign to him but he waves for you to stop.

"Bro if you keep flapping your motherfucking hands around like that I will chop them right off."

You shove him against the hood and stare him down. It's been a while since you've seen him this sober. You honestly forgot what a dick he is.

He glares up at you and his fucking clown makeup just makes the whole thing comical. While the two of you stare each other down, you hear a voice from behind you.

"Oh my fuck, are you serious? Gamzee you fucking smoked at lunch how are you already _not_ baked." You turn and see his short friend.

Gamzee growls at you, _actually_ growls and pushes you off of him. He's going to be all kinds of scary once he's grown out of his obligatory lanky Makara phase. You feel strange that he's already threatening to be taller than you, and you're by no means short at about six foot three.

He walks over to his friend and just wraps his arms around him, not saying anything as they stood, blocking the path of cars.

Meulin taps at your arm and you look down at her as she signs.

"Are those two having sex?"

You laugh quietly and shrug. "Could be, but I don't really want to think about my brother fucking."

"Yeah I get that. I wouldn't want to think about my sister doing that either."

You raise your eyebrows. "How old is she?"

"Almost fourteen. She's only in eighth grade."

"So's the little guy." You point to your brother who's still hugging his friend.

"Then what's he doing here? The middle school is like a mile away!" She laughs out loud and you can't but to smile at the sound. She just has such a perfect laugh.

"Something about excelling in science. I'm not sure. Ask him about it maybe."

You keep signing with her as the two boys hug it out. You've seen this happen before. And without his friend in the same school to calm him down, your brother has a tendency to get a little violent. Good thing it was only a year's separation. You don't know what would happen otherwise.

After a good while, they finally break apart and _both _of them are smiling. It's always been spooky to you how those two could calm each other down like that. Your phone buzzes.

_KUR10Z W3R3 73H F4CK R U?_

_ON MY WAY, TUNA MAGOONA. MY BRO WAS JUST HAVIN A BIG OL FIT. BE THERE SOON! :o)_

_U B3773R B! 1 D0N7 W4NN4 B 4RC3D 2 D0 *50M37H1NG* 1N UR H0U53!_

_BE COOL TUNA, WE'RE LEAVING NOW... :o(_

As much as you loved your best friend, his tendency to jerk it whenever he was bored despite having a great girlfriend that he spent eighty percent of his time with really amazed you.

You unlock the car and everyone gets in. You're glad that Gamzee's friend is along. It means that Meulin sits in front with you. You take the short trip to you house, noticing her busy texting the whole way there. With the exception of Aerosmith the ride is completely silent.

When you make it to your house, the boys in the back rush inside. They're probably going to get stoned. Or at least you know that your brother is.

Mituna's waiting in his car. You're still not entirely positive how he got his license. Sheer dumb luck you imagine. But he gets out of the sedan and runs over to you. "Hey Kurly what's up!" He turns his head to look at Meulin then looks back at you. "Oh shit it's that new hot chick!" You swat him in the shoulder but Meulin just laughs.

"My name's Meulin! And you're _in_ my homeroom and my home ec class!"

He makes a face and then smiles. "Fuck no way! Must've been too busy telling Tula what I was gonna do to her later to have noticed!" He laughs loud and unabashedly as the three of you go inside. You look around. Your dad isn't there and you give a little sigh of relief. You motion for them to follow you and then go into the basement.

You throw on a Grateful Dead record. Your dad's old collection is down here and he doesn't seem to mind you listening to them. They're not really your style but they seem to keep Mituna in focus. But you're not _really_ here to study.

You unzip one of the beanbag chairs and dig around until you find your stash. Mituna lights a few candles and you throw Meulin an apologetic look.

She tilts her head to the side and furrows her brow. "What are you doing? I thought we were going to study!"

Mituna laughs loudly but you throw a stray bean from the chair at him. You look at her and clear your throat. "Sorry..."

She shrugs. "I don't _mind_, I just wish you would've told me!" She sits down on the couch and Mituna sprawls in the chair.

He makes a little whining noise in his throat. "Fuck, Kurloz, can I get Tula over here? I'm fucking _horny_."

You frown at him and shake your head as you just sign no at him.

He huffs as he watches you roll a joint. You don't get stoned as much as your younger brother, but sometimes lighting up is just a nice way to unwind. Not to mention the fact that it makes you talk. And once you get talking you don't really stop.

Meulin pats the couch next to her. "You can sit here if you want!"

You laugh and nod as you sit next to her. You pull a lighter out of your pocket and dry out the joint before lighting the tip. You hold it to her first and she take it, inhaling and holding it in before letting it out with a giggle and passing it to Mituna. She looks at you. "If I'm being one hundred percent honest, I don't do this a whole lot." You can hear Mituna coughing. He probably took too much in. Looking up confirms your suspicion. You take it from him and take a long drag off of it yourself. You let it out with an audible sigh and a smile as you pass it on.

After a few more passes between the three of you, you're pleasantly buzzed and you can tell that Mituna and Meulin are as well. Mituna's moved from the chair and has pushed himself against you. It's moved you closer to Meulin so you don't really _mind_, but you've got a feeling that he wants more than just innocent couch cuddles.

Meulin's happily talking about the people in the school that she thinks are fucking. You nod as you listen. You know she's right on some of them. Others you really can't imagine ever actually being a thing ever.

You still haven't said much. Just little affirmations and responses no longer than three words. She yawns and she leans against you. You kick your feet up on the table in front of the couch and drape your arms over their shoulders. Mituna groans at your touch and nuzzles against you. You just run your fingers through his hair. Getting him high probably wasn't a great idea if he was already horny when he got here. Now he needs a release. You look down at him. "Take care of yourself, Tuna." You push him a little and he sits up, moving to unzip his pants. "Not here. Bathroom." You point towards the bathroom and he sighs exaggeratedly, but gets up to go there.

Meulin smiles and wraps her arms around you. "Your voice is so _low, _Carlos!"

You look down and laugh a little. You sign as you speak. "It's not Carlos, it's Kurloz." You spell the names to show her the difference.

Her eyes widen and her jaw drops a little. "I'm so sorry! It's... Kur-loz!"

You laugh and nod. "Yeah. It's a tough one."

She rests her head against your shoulder. "Okay. I really like your voice though! I wish you'd talk more at school."

You shake your head. "Can't."

"Why not?" She keeps her eyes on you as she speaks. It must be harder to hear you when she's high.

You shrug. "Nerves I guess. I get scared."

"Of what?"

Another shrug. "Dunno. Just scared." You smile at her. "But I talk in front of special people."

Her face flushes. "I'm not special!"

"You're very special."

She scrunches her nose but doesn't move from your shoulder. "Am not."

You brush a hand through her hair. It's an intimate move, but she seems completely stoned and you're just riding your buzz. "You are."

You swallow. You want to lean down and kiss her. To taste her lips and let your tongues brush softly against each other. You want to feel her body pressed against yours and to run your hands over the gentle curves of her body. _You want to lay her down and take her right here on the couch. Fuck Mituna. He'd do the same thing to you if Latula were here. He has_.

You sigh and content yourself with the feeling of her hair.

She says she wants to get to know you before you kiss her again.

What better way to get to know someone that by getting stoned with them?

Actually there are so many better ways. Maybe tomorrow you'll take her to the boardwalk. It's nice out there this time of year. No tourists and so few locals that it may as well close down. Such an eerie kind of beauty.

You feel her breathing slow. You look down to see that she's fallen asleep.

You smile and press a kiss to the top of her head.

That's something that you'll keep to yourself for a while. For now you just want to bask in her smell and the contact.


	6. Ask Me

Over the course of the next few weeks, you spend a lot of time with her. You get stoned a few times with her. It's the most you've smoked in the last few years. You haven't enjoyed getting high this much in even longer. Possibly ever. Some days it's just the three of you. Your two M's and you. Sometimes Latula or your brother joins you. The days Latula and Mituna are there you don't see much of them. They tend to go up to your room or to the bathroom.

You have to admit that you're more jealous than you usually let on.

But you shove that to the back of your mind because today, this wonderful glorious Thursday, it's just the two of you on the couch. Your dad's out on business. Your brother's at a friend's house. You're alone with her and you've got one of your mom's old CDs playing. It's laid back, but still has good energy. Meulin likes it because it has a nice beat, so you don't fight it. You're happy if she's happy.

You decide today that you're going to get out your bong but she tells you to just put it away. You shrug as you put it away and start to roll a joint. She watches you intently, transfixed by your fingers. You dry it off with your lighter and offer it to her. She signs no at you and you take the first drag, waiting until she asks for it.

Eventually she takes it and the two of you sit in a stoned silence for nearly an hour before she leans against you. You feel her hand brush against your elbow and you look down. She's starting up at you with a warm smile on her face. You quirk a corner of your lips up as you watch her. She's chewing at her lip and your pot addled brain is telling you that this is it. This is that moment. _You could take her now, Kurloz. She'd be okay with that_. You don't listen to that part of you.

You lean down and rest your forehead against hers, your eyes searching her face. You need to know this time. "It's okay?"

She doesn't respond this time. She just closes the distance between your lips with a kiss so soft that it barely registers.

But her hand on your face, twining fingers with your hair, _that_ registers. You stare at her, wide eyed and unsure until she brings your lips together again. This time you're ready and you bring your hand to her cheek as well. The other hand cards through her hair. You move your lips softly, slowly letting her respond. She does, and as she moves she lets out the softest sounds. Little sighs and breaths against your lips.

She repositions herself so she's on your lap with her hands in her hair. You're more than all right with this. She knows what she wants. She's _showing_ you what she wants. And what she wants is to kiss you.

You don't care if it's from the pot. You don't care if she won't remember tomorrow, which she very well might not. But right now you are so lost in this perfect, slow kiss that you almost think you're dreaming. At least until she pulls away laughing. You smile at her, eyes searching her face. She chews at her lip. "That was really nice." She laughs again and you run your fingers through her hair.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah it was." You lean up a little and press another soft kiss to her lips. "It's okay?"

"Yeah." She closes the distance again and you can feel her tongue flick out against your lips. You happily open your mouth and let her take the lead.

Her tongue is so small and soft against your own. She tastes like her green apple chap stick and pot and the color green. You love that you can taste colors when you're high, but you don't spend any time thinking about that with her tongue in your mouth. She moves it slowly, exploring as far back as she can and you meet her with your own long tongue, tracing around hers gently before pressing into her mouth.

Her mouth, like her tongue, is small, but you move your tongue as much as you can and you hear her make a sound at the contact. You try not to move too fast. Just kissing her like this is enough right now. _No it isn't. You want her to moan for you, Kurloz_. You shove that thought to the back of your head and just enjoy the slide of tongues.

She presses closer to you and you can feel the soft swell of her breasts again your chest. _You want to move your hand under her shirt and thumb at her nipple. You want to rip off her clothes. You want to take her right now_. You compromise and move your hands to her hips as she moves her arms to wrap around your neck

You can feel your self getting hard and you try to think about things to make it go away, but she's on your lap and _moving_ which is not helping your situation at all. She lets out a little moan against your lips and your eyes rolls back in your head. She pulls back again. Both of you are breathing hard and her face is a deep shade of pink. You're sure that your face is probably red and that it's not even a fraction as cute as it is on her. She licks her lips and smiles again. "So."

You smile right back at her. "So?"

"We just made out."

You nod, grin still spread across your face.

She swallows and you watch how her throat moves before she speaks. "What does that mean?" Her voice sounds hurt. You never want to hear that in her tone again.

You put a hand to her face and move your thumb against her soft cheek. "I guess I shoulda asked, huh?" She tilts her head to the side curiously. You can't help but to be reminded of a cat. You bite at the back of one of your piercings. "Would you go out with me?"

She laughs and presses another soft kiss to your lips. "Yes!" She buries her head against your neck and you can feel her smiling. You wrap your arms around her and rest your head on her shoulder.

She said _yes_.

It's nothing that big, but she fucking said _yes_. You just want to pick her up and carry her around and shout to the world that she. Said. _Yes_.

It's not like you proposed, but still. Asking her out was a big step. And now you're sitting there with your _girlfriend_ on your lap. She's all softness and curves and you just want to stay like this, but she readjusts herself and snuggles close to you. She rests her head against your shoulder and you can feel yourself slipping to sleep.

Pot always has a nasty tendency of making you tired. You hear your phone go off and you pull it from your pocket. You chuckle at the message.

"Hey Meulin, you wanna go see a motherfuckin' movie tomorrow?"

She looks up at you and grins. "Yeah!"

"Cool. We're goin' after school. Mituna and Latula are gonna be there too. That okay?" You raise your eyebrows.

She giggles. "Yeah that's fine. Those too are so cute together!"

You give a lopsided grin. "Yeah, those motherfuckers are real fuckin' cute together." You bite your lip. "Neither of 'em are cute as you though."

She squeals. "I'm not cute!"

"No you are the cutest and I will kiss you until you believe me."

She laughs again. "Well if I never believe you then you'll have to keep kissing me."

"I can handle that."

You bring your lips to her again and the two of you kiss softly, breaking apart only when the two of you are too tired to sit up. You lay down with her on the couch and sleep soundly.


	7. Hushed Thoughts

You sit in the cafeteria at school, waiting for her to show up. You took her home last night after your highs had worn off and the two of you hadn't said much on the way home. But she let you kiss her goodnight. That was a good thing, right? You drum your fingers against the table and soon the bell rings. You shrug and get up to go to homeroom. You'll just have to talk to her during homeroom or your first real class.

You grab your things and take your sit. Mituna slides in next to you and smirks. Obviously he has something to say about what he and his girlfriend did last night. You really don't want to listen to him. You've got your own stories to tell. But he just starts talking as per usual. "So guess who has the best fucking girlfriend _ever_?"

You smile and point to yourself, thoroughly confusing your friend.

"But you don't...?" It dawns on him slowly. "No way! Seriously?"

You nod slowly and smile when you hear her voice. You look up at her and wave. She goes to sit by you but, much like days prior, her friends corral her into her assumed seat. You frown a little, cursing them mentally, but you just half listen to Mituna as he babbles once again about his sexual exploits. Eventually the bell rings and you lope after Meulin. You smile and sign to her a little meekly. "Kiss?" She smiles with a nod, and you lean down to give her a soft kiss before you head to class. You take your usual seats and sign through the beginning of class about what movie you want to go to tonight.

After class you kiss her goodbye and are left feeling a little triumphant that she's so okay with all of this. You go through your next class in a better mood that you've been in for a long time and when you go to lunch she's sitting at a table with Mituna and Latula already. You take a seat next to her and sign little things to her as you eat.

Mituna and Latula talk excitedly about the movie they chose, and you knew that they'd pick one. It's just how they are. When you're done eating you listen to Meulin tell little stories again. As the bell rings signaling the end of lunch, you head off to your next couple of classes, but not before once again giving Meulin a soft kiss before you head out. There's just something about being able to _do_ that that makes you incredibly happy.

You go through the rest of the day in a haze. After your last class, you go out to you car and wait for your brother and his friend again. You take them back to your house and wait for a few hours before heading to the theater. Meulin is already there with Latula, who you've learned actually lives very close to her and Mituna's texted to let you all know that he'd be there in a couple. The three of you go inside and Latula decides to be magnanimous and buy your tickets for the movie. You give her a thumbs up and she just cackles at you.

In return you decide to pay for all of the concessions, though you write down what you want. You smile as you hand the boy the list. You know him from school. You're pretty sure that he's Gamzee's friend's brother.

Meulin confirms his name. "Hi Kankri! Did you get all of your Chem homework done?" She smiles at him and he blinks slowly.

"Yes, I did. Though Cronus really wasn't _any_ help with it. Sometimes I really wish that he wouldn't attempt to solicit any type of... _relationship_ with any person within his vicinity. Did you know that he tried to..." He notices Latula and smiles. "Hello Latula! I didn't see you there. Is Mituna not joining you today?"

She cackles again. "No, Kankles, my rad boy's gonna be here real soon. MT's just running a little late is all!"

He deflates visibly. "Oh, I see." He starts to get your order together. He looks at you. "Butter on the popcorn?" You nod your head and he bristles uncomfortably. "Very well." He gets your order together in silence and hands it to you. "That comes to twenty-eight fifty." You hand him your card and then the three of you go to save your seats in the movie.

Meulin looks up at Latula. "What movie are we seeing again?"

"Tucker and Dale Versus Evil!"

She blinks a few times and smiles. "I have _no_ idea what that is!" She giggles and grabs your hand, lacing your fingers together.

You smile and feel your face flush as you walk into the dark of the theater and sit down. Latula sits in the very back row and you decide to go off to one of the side rows. You really don't want to watch or listen to them as they start fucking in the theater. Because you know that they are. But you and Meulin sign while you can in the dark of the theater and, once it's too dark to do that, you hold hands through the previews. Once the movie starts she leans against your shoulder and all that you can concentrate on is that damnable voice in your head.

_Go ahead and try something, Kurloz. She's leaning against you. You both obviously want to do something. Besides, Mituna's over there getting a blow job you know that you could just lean over and suck on her lower lip. Put your hand on her thigh. Run it up and under her skirt. Go ahead Kurloz. You just have to lean over and do it._

You forces these thoughts out of your head, but your body reacts to the idea despite your efforts. You concentrate on the movie as much as you can, though the smell of Meulin's hair makes you want to lean down and kiss her.

Eventually though the movie ends and you go with Meulin out to your car. You smile down at her as you drive and she directs you to her house. It's in one of the trailer parks in town, and she seems a little embarrassed by it. You take her by the hand and go to her door like a gentleman and kiss her goodnight. The two of you part ways and you drive home, a smile spread across your face.

So far as dates go that one wasn't terrible. Though it makes you wonder what it is you want from everything.

You park in the driveway and make your way up to your room. You close your door and stripe down to your boxers. You've got an idea of what it is you want to do now that you're alone and your mind is full of fantasies.

You lay on your back on your bed and palm yourself through your boxers, images of Meulin in varying states of undress running through your head. You wonder for a while what kind of panties she wears. Does she wear them? Is she secretly the kind of girl to go commando? That thought spurs you on a little in your ministrations.

It doesn't take you long to get off and you stare at your hand disappointedly, like you've betrayed yourself by doing this.

You grab a tissue off your bed table and clean yourself off then throw it in your trash can. You stare at your ceiling for a while and then get up to go to your desk and fire up your computer. May as well waste the night away trolling through Reddit and 4chan again. Hours pass and eventually you decide to sleep, though you're still a little upset with yourself. You go to brush your teeth and your bro's already in the bathroom washing off his paint from the day.

He looks over to you. "Whoa, bro. You in there beating your motherfucking meat all night or what?"

You blink a few times and then realize what he's talking about. You tuck yourself back into your boxers and shove him away from the sink to brush your teeth.

"Everything cool bro?"

You shrug as you brush your teeth.

"Everything go okay on your date?" He dries his face off as he talks to you.

You nod.

"Then what's the problem bro?"

You spit and look at him. "I ain't a good guy."

He raises his eyebrows. "Must be tough if it's got you talking motherfucker."

You run your hand through your hair. "It's like, you know, my motherfucking brain's out to get me, Gamzee."

"I get that too bro."

You nod. "Yeah. Fuck brain chemistry."

He lets out his honking stoner laugh. "Yeah bro, fuck it!"

You ruffle his hair. "I'm goin' to bed, bro."

"Yeah, night."

"Night."

You go to bed and toss and turn, wondering if you really are a bad man.

You'd like to think that you aren't, but you're starting to wonder.


	8. Listen Closely

You wake up sprawled over your bed. You look at the clock and see that you've slept past noon. You sit up groggily and grab some clean clothes to go take a shower. You let the hot spray wash away the feeling from last night, but you take care of yourself again and let the shower wash that away as well.

Once you're feeling a little more human in the shower, you wash yourself quickly and then get out. You towel yourself off and wrap the towel around your waist before going back to your room and sitting at your desk. You notice your phone buzzing by your keyboard.

_(=_ _ω´=)_ _HEY KURLOZ! I WAS WONDERING IF YOU WERE F33LING UP FUR HANGING OUT WITH ME TODAY!_

Her texts always make you smile.

_HEY. YEAH I'D BE UP FOR HANGIN WITH MY FAVORITE LADY. :o)_

That sounds... More desperate than you want.

_d(=^_ _･_ _ω_ _･_ _^=)b_ _YAY! WHAT DO YOU F33L LIKE DOING?_

_LET'S GO TO SUBWAY AND CHILL OUT. MAYBE HANG OUT AT MY PLACE WHEN WE'RE DONE? :o)_

_ヽ_ _(=^_ _･_ _ω_ _･_ _^=)_ _丿_ _THAT SOUNDS PURRFECT! WANT ME TO M33T YOU THERE?_

_NAH KITTEN I'LL COME GET YOU IN TWENTY. :o)_

_ヽ_ _(=^_ _･_ _ω_ _･_ _^=)_ _丿_ _S33 YOU THEN!_

You smile and put the phone back on the desk before pulling out your clothes for the day. You wonder for a minute what the weather's going to be like, but you just shrug and pull your jeans and shirt on before digging for a clean pair of socks. You find one and pull them on before going downstairs.

Gamzee's sitting in the living room while your dad yells at him. You're honestly just surprised the asshole is even home this weekend. You slip your boots on and are about to leave when your dad barks at you. "Kurloz! Where the motherfuck do you think you're goin'?"

You swallow and look at him. "I was gonna go pick up my girlfriend." You look past your dad at Gamzee. It's obvious that he hasn't smoked yet today.  
He growls. "What was that? Can't hear you."

You rub your arm and repeat yourself, just a little louder.

"Don't fuckin' knock her up." He waves you away and you leave. When you get into your car you breath a sigh of relief.

You start the car and head for her place. You remember the way from yesterday and smile when you pull up in front of her house. You send her a quick text to let her know that you're here and get out to sit on the hood of your car. When she come out of the house you can't help smile broadly. She skips over to you and you slide off the hood to scoop her up in a hug.

The two of you break from the hug and get into the car to head to Subway. You're excited to go on a real date with her. Not having another couple around probably won't hurt anything either. You get to Subway relatively quickly and go inside with her. You hand them a slip of paper with your order on it and point to your mouth, shaking your head. They seem to get the point and make your sandwich while Meulin decides what she wants. You go to pay again, but she bumps you with her hip and hands them a card.

The two of you go sit at a table and you listen to her talk while the two of you eat. You finish yours first and sip at your soda while you watch her eat. You respond with short signs and tap her foot with yours. She scrunches her nose at you and stick out her tongue. So cute.

Once she's finished the two of you head out. In the car you look over at her. "Wanna check out the boardwalk?" You smile.

She laughs. "That sounds perfect! I've never been to the boardwalk here before!"

You grin as you turn down towards it. "It's pretty fuckin' cool. I mean it's just like shops and arcades and shit but it's fun."

Her smile stays on her face and she grabs your hand loosely. "I bet it's great!"

You shrug a shoulder. "Thought it was cool as all motherfuck when I was a kid, but it's lost some charm growin' up by it."

"That's understandable! But maybe it'll be like new again with me there?" She tilts her head and you can't help but to be reminded of an inquisitive cat.

"Yeah maybe." You park the car. "It's just over there." You point down toward the lake.

The two of you get out the car and she slips her small hand into yours again. You walk with her down the wooden walkway and she looks excitedly into the shop windows. Eventually you come to a stall where a man's painting faces and she gives you a grin. You laugh silently as the two of you get in line and look at the options. She signs to you. "I'm getting the tiger! What do you want to get?"

You shrug. "I usually paint my own face."

"Really?"

You nod. "Yeah. I end up with a skull most times."

"Spooky!" She raises her eyebrows almost comically with a laugh as she looks back at the options and points. "How about that?"

You look to where she points. It's a day of the dead skull. A little... festive. At least for your tastes. But with the reds and yellows replaced with purples and blues you think it might look pretty cool. You just hope that the guy doing it knows what he's doing. Meulin sits down and asks for the tiger while you sit and watch him work. You pull out your notepad and paper and ask him questions.

_DO YOU SEAL THIS?_

You hand him the note and he smiles. "Oh so someone that knows a little something about face painting?" You nod once. "Well, sonny-Jim, I don't have to seal this paint. It actually seals itself." You make a face but don't question that. You write out another note while he paints Meulin's face. Next time she wants her face painted, you think that you'd rather do it yourself. This man knows what he's doing, but you prefer your own work. You hand him another note.

_I'D LIKE THE DAY OF THE DEAD SKULL. BUT WITH BLUES AND PURPLES INSTEAD._

You hand him the note and he nods. "I can do that, boy-o. Just sit tight while your little lady here gets finished off." He works in silence for the next few minutes and then lets Meulin go. He tries to chat with you but instead Meulin strikes up a conversation and tells stories about going to the fair as a girl and having her face painted. You just want to pull away with your face half painted and kiss her for somehow managing to melt your heart with her stories.

Once your face is painted, the man takes a photo of the two of you. You pay for it before going on your way. The two of you go to the end of the boardwalk and decide to sit on the lakefront. There aren't many people around despite it being Saturday afternoon. Your wrap an arm over her shoulders and she leans against you with a content sigh. You look down at her and her tiger-painted face and give her a wide smiled before leaning in and pressing a light kiss to her lips. She presses up into it but then laughs against your lips. "I don't want to ruin your paint!" She doesn't move her lips from yours and the vibrations and the puffs of air feel nice there.

You smile and speak even more softly than you usually do. "It's fine, kitten." You press back into the kiss happily.

As you kiss her you realize that today is one of those few, perfect days. The weather is the best you've seen in months. The sun shines brightly and a breeze blows over the grassy shore. Your thoughts haven't troubled you all day, and now you're in the middle of a soft kiss with a girl that makes your heart do somersaults. Nothing could make the day any better.


End file.
